Mudminnow River nobody blames you

His frown deepens and she stands resolute, a plume of white hot air escaping from her nose as he studies her.  What is wrong with that?  What is wrong with the way she is?  How could someone still look at her like that after all she'd been through — after all she'd come out on top from?  

But then he explains it to her, and she gets it.  He thought these lands were lacking.  Somewhere, she knew that he thought she was lacking.  

And that pissed her off more than anything else.  What's in it for you?  The words are accusatory; he'd mentioned fighting for food, for land, for wives.  If he thinks she's about to submit herself to him (or anyone) that didn't respect her independence, he was dead wrong.  

But the temptation of what he offered was almost too great to resist, even if it meant pretending for a while.  That's what she'd done to Kalganov, wasn't it?  And maybe he could teach her to be rid of the guilt she felt for Nashoba once and for all.  Maybe the maggot-throated fiend would stop haunting her dreams.